Xiaomi wants to sell much more than smartphones in South Africa, the company’s new local boss, Tianshi Lv, told TechCentral. He said the Chinese brand now sees the country as an important and strategic market.
Lv took over as Xiaomi’s South African country manager in March 2026. Before that, he ran the company in Peru for six years.
He said Xiaomi’s share of the Peruvian smartphone market grew from 1% to 30% in that time. That made it the biggest phone brand in Peru, he said.
Lv said the same three part plan will be used in South Africa. Xiaomi will build awareness of its brand and sell a full range of products at different prices. It will also sell through mobile operators, retailers and online stores.
He would not say how much of the local market Xiaomi holds now, or what share it is aiming for. He said there were “different sources” for market share data.
Lv said South African buyers know their technology and are loyal to brands. Because of this, he said, Xiaomi has to “tell our story” before people will switch.
Asked about weak economic growth and tight household budgets, Lv did not speak about the economy. He said the country has many technology literate consumers and that Xiaomi is here for the long term.
Phones are only the start, Lv said. Xiaomi is also selling robot vacuums, smart TVs and its Electric Scooter 6 range in South Africa. The scooters will cover entry level to high end prices.
The wider range is part of Xiaomi’s “Human x Car x Home” plan. It links phones, cars and smart home devices through one software platform.
The interview took place before the launch of the Redmi Note 17 range. Three models went on sale through Vodacom, Takealot, Incredible Connection, HiFi Corp and TFG.
The Pro Max has a 10 000mAh battery, the largest Xiaomi has put in a phone. Lv said it supports 100W charging. The Pro has an 8 340mAh battery, and the standard model has a 7 700mAh battery.
Xiaomi promises up to six years of security updates across the range. Both Pro models are rated to resist dust, being under water and high pressure water jets.
The push comes at a hard time for the company. Research firm Omdia said Xiaomi’s global phone shipments fell 26% to 31.2 million units in the second quarter of 2026.
Omdia said more than half of Xiaomi’s phones cost less than US$200. This left it the most exposed of the top five brands to rising memory chip costs, the firm said.
Asked if the new phones cost more than older models, Lv did not answer directly. He said Xiaomi was bringing flagship features to mid range phones.
Lv had nothing to announce about Xiaomi branded shops in South Africa. There are also no plans to build products locally, though he said Xiaomi wants to become “more and more localised”.
Xiaomi plans to bring its electric cars to Europe in 2027. Asked about South Africa, Lv said: “We don’t have specific information right now.”
Source: this article is based on reporting by TechCentral. Image: TechCentral. Written with the help of AI and published by the Tzaneen Voice Technology desk. See our Editorial Standards.
Werner Jacobs covers technology for Tzaneen Voice. Werner reports on mobile networks, data prices, internet access, smartphones, apps, AI, cybersecurity and South African tech companies. Each story explains what a new product, price change or policy means for ordinary users in South Africa.